Stop mechanism for knitting machines



' Dec. 20, 1949 H. c. GRANT STOP MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Sept. 3, 1948 FIG. 2.

awe/whom ATTO R N EY Patented Dec. 20, 1949 STOP MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES Horace C. Grant, Atlanta, Ga., assignor to Egan Cotton Mills, Inc., Atlanta, Ga., a corporation of Georgia Application September 3, 1948, Serial No. 47,671

1 Claim. 1

This invention has for its object to provide an automatic stop mechanism for the type of knitting machines shown in Patent No. 1,816,416, ranted to Baynard Willingham July 26, 1931, operable in the event of breakage of the roving as laid on the guideway. In that machine the successive plies of roving are laid on top of the guideway and are each knitted to the preceding ply and to a backing of burlap by two rows of vertically reciprocating needles, one in the front and the other behind the guideway. To the end had in view my invention comprises a reciprocating contact member controlling a circuit maker and breaker which is a part of the electrical circuit energizing the machine, and adapted upon the absence of a ply of roving to make contact with the needles of the front set thus completing the stop circuit to deenergize the motor drive, but at other times prevented from contacting with the front needles by the interposition of roving.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings, in which corresponding parts are designated by corresponding marks of reference- Figure 1 is a transverse vertical section through a portion of a machine like that shown in the said patent having my invention applied thereto.

Figure 2 is a diagrammatic view of the electrical controlling circuit as may be used in my invention.

Figure 3 is a detail of the holder for the rod It.

The guideway for the strip to be knitted is formed by the vertical front and rear walls 2 as in the said patent and above the space between them is laid the roving a to be knit into the fabric. In the front of the guideway vertically reciprocates the needle bar 3 while in rear reciprocates the rear needle bar 4, these bars alternately rising and falling and carrying the front and rear needles 6 and respectively. Swinging above the guide 2 is the thread guide plate H, the said plate moving rearward on the rise of the rear needles. All of the above is in accordance with the corresponding parts in the said patent.

To accomplish the purpose of this invention I support by a bracket Ila from the thread plate guide I an insulating tube lBa containing a sliding rod I 8, pressed towards the front of the machine by the spring IS, the rod carrying on its forward end a conducting button 20 located at a level slightly above the rear wall of the fabric guide and adapted when the thread guide is in its forward position to contact with the then raised front needles 6, if no roving is laid and.

positioned on the top of the guide. If, however, there is a ply of roving present, the forward movement of the button is arrested by the roving, this being permitted by the compression of the spring l9.

The button, which in the position above stated projects over the upper end of the path of the rear needles, is swung rearwardly on the rearward movement of the thread guide (which takes place on the rise of the back needles), and out of such path and out of possible contact with the raised back needles.

The contact button forms part of a circuit including solenoid core 22 of a contact maker 22a in the circuit of the motor 2| driving the machine.

With the parts thus organized the button will be pressed against the back side of the roving after the latter has been laid down on the top of the guide and will be swung backward by the thread guide plate I! as the back needles rise. If, however, there should be a failure of the feed of the roving the button will, when the back needles are down be pressed forwardly and against the front needles which are raised at that time thus breaking the drive circuit.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

In a stop mechanism for a machine knitting plies of roving together, the combination of a roving guide, rows of front and rear vertically reciprocating needles, a contact button mounted for movement to contact a needle of one such rows when raised in the absence of a ply on the guide, means for shifting said button out of the path of said needles when raised and a control circuit for the machine including said button and needle.

HORACE C. GRANT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,816,416 Willingham July 28, 1931 2,339,442 Wachsman Jan. 18, 1944 2,389,688 Ruth Nov. 2'7, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 487,615 Germany Dec. 10, 1929 

